A non-modal help mode uses a verb/object paradigm where the current context of the application program for which the user needs help is determined and a help screen is provided which shows all of the actions that can be taken from that context. The non-modal help system includes a display screen providing a window for a number of output displays of an application program, a collection of pre-defined images mapped to the output displays by their context, a user input device for initiating non-modal help, and a non-modal displayer which displays one of the predefined images within the window in the place of its contextually-related output display. Preferably, the predefined images are stored as static bit map images including a dithered representation of the context in which the help was requested and a number of help balloons strategically positioned on the dithered image. Even more preferably, the balloons are positioned manually by a graphic artist to maximize their placement on the dithered image. By providing a balloon to described the functionality of every (or most) of the active elements, a user is provided with a quick framework or "Skeleton" view of the meaning and operation of the various elements in the display.
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16. A method for providing non-modal help comprising:
detecting a user request for non-modal help with respect to a dynamic application display; determining a context of said dynamic application display; retrieving a static image contextually related to said dynamic application display, where said static image includes a non-literal representation of said dynamic application display and textual help within said representation; and displaying said static image in the place of said dynamic application display, wherein said static image includes non-modal non-modal skeleton help simultaneous display of a plurality of help balloons using a verb/object paradigm in response to said user request for non-modal help.
27. A help system comprising:
means for detecting a user request for non-modal help with respect to a dynamic application display; means for determining a context of said dynamic application display; means for retrieving a static image contextually related to said dynamic application display, where said static image includes a non-literal representation of said dynamic application display and textual help within said representation; and means for displaying said static image in the place of said dynamic application display, wherein said static image includes non-modal non-modal skeleton help simultaneous display of a plurality of help balloons using a verb/object paradigm in response to said user request for non-modal help.
1. A computerized non-modal help system comprising:
a display screen providing a window for a plurality of output displays of computerized processes, said plurality of output displays being associated with a respective plurality of contexts; a collection of pre-defined images mapped to said plurality of output displays by said contexts, where each image includes a non-literal representation an output display to which it is mapped and textual help within said representation; a user input device for initiating non-modal help; and a non-modal displayer displaying a pre-defined image within said window in place of an output display to which it is mapped that was present at the time of said initiation of non-modal help, wherein said predefined image includes non-modal skeleton help simultaneous display of a plurality of help balloons using a verb/object paradigm in response to a user request for non-modal help.
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The present application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 60/124,865 filed Mar. 17, 1999, incorporated herein by reference.
This invention relates generally to computerized help systems and, more particularly, to computerized help systems for personal computer application programs.
Personal computer systems have become ubiquitous in both the office and the home because they are powerful and flexible general purpose machines capable of running ("executing") a wide variety of application programs. These application programs can range from the simple to the exceedingly complex. Commonly used application programs are word processors, spreadsheets, calendars, database programs, and Internet Web browsers, among others.
The level of sophistication of personal computer users varies considerably from that of a complete novice to the expert or "guru." However, all users tend to, at some time or another, need some help or assistance in using an application program. This help can be derived from the application program vendor, a more knowledgeable user, a printed manual for the application program software, or by computerized ("on-screen") help. The on-screen help can be provided by the application program itself, a separate help program, or as on-line help from a local or remote computer system.
Most modern personal computer systems use a "windowing" type protocol wherein displays created by application programs are created within one or more windows on the screen of the computer. The windows can range in size from the entire display screen to a small area on the display screen. Typically, these windows are "framed" such that the images within the window are more easily distinguishable from other images on the computer screen. The windows may be provided by the operating system (such as the Microsoft Windows operating systems, the Macintosh operating systems, or Unix operating systems), or may be provided by programs running on the computer system, such as the Java Virtual Machine (JVM).
Windowing systems are often referred to as "modal" systems in that only one window at a time is available for user input. To operate a windowing system in anything other than a modal fashion would create considerable confusion in that a user would not know which window of the various windows displayed on the screen is currently active.
Most on-screen help systems are modal-type help systems in that they are provided in their own help window which is separate from the window being used by the application program from which help was requested. The problem with these modal help systems is that they require a certain level of knowledge and sophistication by a user. That is, a user has to know how to open the help window, navigate through the help system, and then close the help window. While these are not difficult tasks, it has been found to be one which eludes novice and occasional users of personal computers.
Because of the difficulties encountered with modal on-screen help systems, a few non-modal help systems have been developed. One example of a non-modal on-screen help system is "balloon help" available in some later versions of the Macintosh operating system available from Apple Computer, Inc. With balloon help, the Macintosh operating system displays a small balloon enclosing textual information concerning an object that has been engaged with the on-screen cursor ("pointer") for a predetermined period of time. In general, balloon help is only available at the system or "finder" level of the Macintosh operating system, unless it has been specifically programmed into application programs.
Many users of Macintosh computer systems end up turning off balloon help because the information that it provides does not offset the sometimes annoying characteristics of balloon help. One of these annoying characteristics is that balloon help tends to pop up as the cursor is moved over objects on the screen whether help was needed or not. Another deficiency is that the balloons are placed by software (typically the operating system itself), sometimes resulting in other objects on the screen being obscured.
Microsoft Windows Operating Systems, such as Windows 95, Windows 98, and Windows NT, provide a non-modal type of help known as "tool tips" that is somewhat similar to that of balloon help. Microsoft tool tips are primarily application-based in that they evolved from the Microsoft Excel for Windows 3.1 Application Program. More particularly, tool tips are primarily tied to the tool bar of an application program, although it is sometimes also used in a status bar of the application program. To use tool tips, the cursor is held over a button on the tool bar without activating the button, and a small yellow box will appear on the screen having a one-line explanation as to the function of that button. Since tool tips are pretty much restricted to use on the tool bar and, sometimes, the status bar, it tends to be less obtrusive than the Macintosh balloon help.
While the balloon help of Macintosh Computer Systems and the tool tips provided on Microsoft Windows computer systems can provide useful non-modal help, they tend to be quite limited in nature and, under some circumstances, can actually promote confusion in the user. This is due, in part, to the fact that both balloon help and tool tips adopt a object/verb mode for providing help wherein an object is selected and then actions that can be taken with respect to that object are listed. This object/verb paradigm is exemplified by a modal-type help that is also provided under the Windows Operating System. That is, a right mouse button click will result in a "pop-up" window on the screen of the computer operating under Microsoft Windows Operating System, and will provide a list of every action that can be performed on the selected object on the screen. Unfortunately, using an object/verb mode for communicating help ignores the context within which the help is requested. For example, tool tips will provide help for buttons on a toolbar that are not currently active.
Another problem with the object/verb paradigm is that an object needs to be selected before its function is displayed. Therefore, if the user does not know that a particular object has a function in a particular context, he will not know that he should activate, for example, balloon help or tool tips, and thus will not receive the desired assistance.
The present invention provides non-modal help which uses a verb/object paradigm. That is, the current context of the application program for which the user needs help is determined, and a help screen is provided which shows all of the actions that can be taken from that context. Unlike an object/verb paradigm, actions that cannot be taken within that context will not be listed, and no possible actions will be missed by the user.
Briefly, a computerized non-modal help system includes a display screen providing a window for a number of output displays of an application program, a collection of pre-defined images mapped to the output displays by their context, a user input device for initiating non-modal help, and a non-modal displayer which displays one of the predefined images within the window in the place of its contextually-related output display. Preferably, the predefined images are stored as static bit map images including a dithered representation of the context in which the help was requested and a number of help balloons strategically positioned on the dithered image. Even more preferably, the balloons are positioned manually by a graphic artist to maximize their placement on the dithered image. By providing a balloon to described the functionality of every (or most) of the active elements, a user is provided with a quick framework or "skeleton" view of the meaning and operation of the various elements in the display.
In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the screen and the user input device form a part of a client computer system. The help system can further include a server computer system coupled to the client computer system, such as by a TCP/IP network. Common forms of TCP/IP networks are referred to as Intranets and the Internet. In this embodiment, the client computer system supports a browser process, and the server computer system supports a server process. The computerized processes running on the client computer system comprise Applets that are delivered from the server computer system to the client computer system via the network. However, once the Applets are running on the client computer system, they communicate directly with the server processes through, for example, sockets in a Java-based system.
In another aspect of the present invention, a computerized help system includes a display screen providing a process window for a number of output displays of a computerized process, a user input device for initiating non-modal and modal help, non-modal help for displaying help within the process window and response to a request for non-modal help by the user, and modal help for displaying help within a help window in response to a request for modal help by the user. Preferably, the user input device is a pointer mechanism wherein the modal help is initiated by a help button displayed on the screen. The non-modal help is preferably initiated by a pointer positioned within a predetermined distance of the help button by the pointer mechanism under the control of the user. The non-modal help preferably includes a collection of pre-defined bitmap images contextually related to the output displays, where each bitmap image includes a non-literal representation of its related output display and textual help within the representation.
A method for providing non-modal help in accordance with the present invention includes the operations of detecting a user request for non-modal help with respect to a dynamic application display, determining a context of the dynamic application display, retrieving a static image contextually related to the dynamic application display, where the static image includes a non-literal representation of the dynamic application display and textual help within the representation, and displaying the static image in the place of the dynamic application display.
An advantage of the present invention is that non-modal help is provided which operates on a verb/object paradigm rather than the object/verb paradigm of the prior art. The non-modal help is therefore very useful, even for novice or very occasional personal computer users in that it presents in a straightforward fashion the majority, if not all, of the options available to a user within the context of the application program.
The present invention is also advantageous in that it cleanly ties together both non-modal and modal help by using the approach of a cursor to a modal help button as the indication that non-modal help should be provided to the user. That is, a user can enter non-modal help by simply moving a cursor to within a predetermined distance of the modal help button, and can return to the application program by moving the cursor back to the display of the application program.
These and other advantages of the present invention will become apparent to those skilled in the art upon a reading of the following descriptions of the invention and a study of the several figures of the drawing.
In
The computer system 12 is preferably a personal computer system capable of running a Windows operating system provided by Microsoft, Inc. of Redmond, Calif. Alternatively, the computer system 12 can be a Macintosh computer system provided by Apple Computer, Inc. of Cupertino, Calif., a workstation provided by Sun Microsystems, Inc. of Mtn. View, Calif. or Hewlett Packard Company of Palo Alto, Calif., or any other windowing computer system. The monitor 14 is preferably a standard graphical display monitor which be based on cathode ray tube (CRT), liquid crystal display (LCD), plasma emission, and other display technologies. Such displays or "monitors" are available from a variety of sources. The mouse 16 is one example of a class pointing devices which include track balls, joysticks, touch pads, etc. A keyboard 18, typically including cursor, function, and control keys in addition to the standard alphanumeric keyboard is also standard and is available from a variety of sources.
In an embodiment of the present invention, the computerized help system is fully implemented on the computer system 12. In other embodiments, the computerized help system is implemented over a network system to which the computer 12 is coupled. Another computer 20 on the network 22 can be designated as a "server" as either a part of its functionality or as its entire functionality. That is, the server 20 may simply be another computer on the network 22 which provides server services to one or more computers on the network, while still providing other services to local or remote users. Alternatively, the server 20 can be dedicated to server functions.
Illustrated on display screen 14 is a network browser window 24 having standard pull-down menus 26 and navigation buttons 28. The current URL for the browser is shown in a small window 30. The network browser 24 illustrated in this
Within the network browser window 24 is a display window 32 which is displaying a web page 34 having the universal resource locator (URL) indicated in window 30. It should be noted that the web page 34 does not need to be accessed over a network 22, although it may be accessed over the network 22. That is, the web page 34, and other associated web pages, may be sorted locally on the computer 12. The web page 34 as seen in
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Memory such as ROM memory 42 and RAM memory 44 are typically coupled to the memory bus 40, while they can also be coupled to other buses such as the I/O bus 38. ROM 42 and RAM 44 are two examples of computer readable media wherein data and instructions can be stored.
A number of devices known as "peripherals" can be coupled to the microprocessor 36 via the I/O bus 38. For example, the display screen 14 can be coupled to the I/O bus through a suitable video interface. Other examples of typical peripherals are CD-ROM drives 46, a network interface card 48, a floppy disk drive 50, and a hard disk drive 52. Since all of these peripherals can store data and program instructions, these peripherals are further examples of computer readable media. The architecture of the computer system 12 of
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In operation, the web server 20 is typically accessible through the Internet or other TPC/IP protocol network on a continuous basis. The clients, such as client 12A, is often not always connected to the network 22. For example, in the case of personal computers, the computers are often turned off when not in use. Furthermore, some network connections are not always operational even though the computer 12A may be turned on. For example, if the client computer system 12A is using a commercial service such as America On-Line (AOL) as their ISP, they will often dial into the system when they desire network services. However, in the context of this discussion, it will be assumed that a client computer 12A has a current connection to the network 22.
When client computer 12A activates or "launches" its network browser a "home" web page URL (usually stored as a preference) causes the browser to send a request out onto the network for that web page. In response, a web server (such as web server 20), will provide Hypertext Marked Up Language (HTML) file to the browser to generate a display within the browser window. This HTML can include text, graphics, images (such as GIF images), and a number of other types of communication media. In addition, the web server may send an "applet" to the browser. These applets are small programs designed to run within the browser window to provide some form of user service. For example, the applet can provide moving imagery, interactive program functions, etc. Additional requests sent by the client computer 12A will result in additional HTML and possibly additional applets being sent in return.
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The in/out screen 34 has several sections. One is the chooser section 58, another is the title bar section 60, and yet another is the main display section 62. The chooser section 58 in a preferred implementation of the present invention allows a user to select from a choice of applets which control the content of the web page 34. The title bar 60 not only includes the title of the current page, but also allows preferences to be set and provides for a help function in accordance with the present invention. The main display 62 is where the actual data is formatted and displayed.
While the various sections of the web page 34 may seem self explanatory, there are a number of subtleties that may not be apparent to a new user or to a user who is not very skilled in computer operations. The present invention provides at least one and preferably two or more methods for aiding the user in operating the software. As will be discussed in greater detail subsequently, two preferred methodologies for providing help in accordance with the present invention include a non-modal help mode and a modal help mode.
As used herein, a "modal" mode is one which requires a user to activate a window which is separate from the window that was currently active in order to receive on-screen help. Thus, traditional help windows are modal while the aforementioned balloon help and tool tips are non-modal. A preferred embodiment of the present invention further preferably provides non-modal help using a verb/object paradigm, as will be explained below.
In the event that a user of a client machine 12 feels that he is in need of help with an application program, he causes a cursor 64 to move toward the help "button" 66 in the title bar 60. In one embodiment of the present invention, the proximity of the cursor 64 to the help button 66 will cause the display of a non-modal help screen as seen in FIG. 4B.
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While the sections 62' and 60' are discussed as if they were separate, it is preferred that the entire area comprising the sections 62' and 60' are stored as a bitmap within the help system 10. This bit map is most preferably stored on the client machine 12, although it may also be stored elsewhere on the network 22, such as on the server 20.
It should also be noted that the section 62' is not a precise image of the display within section 62. That is, it is representative (i.e. contextually related) of the image in section 62 of
A window 66 in section 62' illustrates a "mouse over" feature which provides greater detail as to an employee's location. The balloon 68H explains about the window and how to edit the content of the window. As to some of the other balloons, the balloon 68A indicates the purpose of the help button, balloon 68B indicates that clicking on the title of the in/out board gives information about the applet version, etc.
It should be noted that the balloons 68 of
It will therefore be appreciated that the present invention provides non-modal help which uses a verb/object paradigm. That is, the current context of the application program for which the user needs help is determined, and a help screen is provided which shows all of the actions that can be taken from that context. Unlike an object/verb paradigm, actions that cannot be taken within that context will not be listed, and no possible actions will be missed by the user.
The developers of the present invention sometimes refer to the multiplicity of balloons (e.g. 68A-68L) as "skeleton"™ help in that the aggregate image of a number of balloons is somewhat skeletal in appearance. With Skeleton help, virtually everything that can be accomplished within a single screen is shown simultaneously, and those things that cannot be accomplished within that screen or within that context are not shown. This provides a user with a very rapid, non-modal method for obtaining information on the proper operation of an application program. In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the skeleton help is turned off such that the screen returns to that shown in
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If the user selects skeletal help by moving the cursor into proximity with the help button, an alternative image 72' is displayed in place of the original image 72. It will again be noted that the image 72' is preferably visually distinctive, such as by shown in half tone, and is not the same as, but merely is representative of, the original image 72. For example, the current date on
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The context-sensitive nature of the present invention is further illustrated in
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The process 112 is initiated from a browser of the client machine. This process has been described previously with reference to FIG. 3. The URL is entered into the computer in an operation 114 and a request is sent via the network to the web server as previously described.
The web server for this invention can be any suitable web server such as the Microsoft Personal Web Server (PWS). Alternatively, web servers are available from a variety of other vendors including Netscape Communications, Inc. In the case of the Microsoft PWS, an interface known as ISAPI is provided by Microsoft to allow for "bolting", i.e. to attach other programs to the web server. These other programs are typically handled by utilities known as servlets. Typically, a servlet initiates an application program and also provides HTML. A servlet is therefore used as a conduit from the ISAPA interface of the Microsoft PWS to the application program of the present invention. Serviettes for this purpose are sold commercially from such companies as New Atlanta and JRUN for both Microsoft and Netscape Communications web servers.
When the server receives the URL from the operation 114, the web server starts the servlet 118 which then creates HTML in the form of two applets which are passed back through the web server 116 to the client. The servile also initiates the program of the present invention at an operation 120 which starts them running in free running sockets 122.
While the use of sockets is well known to those skilled in the art, a little background will be given here for completeness. Before data is sent across the Internet from one host to another using TCP/IP, it is split into packets of varying but finite size called datagrams, which range in size from a few dozen bytes to about 60,000 bytes. Anything larger than this, and often things smaller than this, needs to be split into smaller pieces before it can be transmitted. The advantage is that if one packet is lost, it can be retransmitted without requiring redelivery of all other packets. Furthermore if packets arrive out of order they can be reordered at the receiving end of the connection. However, this is all transparent to the Java programmer. The host's native networking software transparently handles the splitting of data into packets on the sending end of a connection, and the reassembly of packets on the receiving end. Instead, the Java programmer is presented with a higher level abstraction called a "socket." The socket represents a reliable connection for the transmission of data between two hosts. It isolates the programmers from the details of packet encodings, lost and retransmitted packets, and packets that arrive out of order. There are four fundamental operations a socket performs. These are: connect to a remote machine; send data; receive data; and close the connection. A socket may not be connected to more than one host at a time.
The two HTML applets received from the servlet 118 create windows in an operation 124. The browser then requests classes from the server which are sent back to the browser by an operation 126. These classes comprise additional applets. The browser then initiates the start of the applets in an operation 128 which opens the Java Virtual Machine (JVM) in an operation 130 and which automatically starts the applets in an operation 132. The applets create sockets 134 which talk directly with the sockets 122 on the server. That is, once the process has been initiated the browser and web server are no longer intermediaries in the process and that the sockets 134 and 122 talk directly with each other over the network. To put it another way, everything inside box 135 is startup operation to initialize and start the socket 134 on the client and the socket program 122 on the server, which thereafter communicate directly with each other.
The applets 132 are the aforementioned applets in the list in the choosier section 58. If the current applets being run detects a request for modal help (by clicking on the help button) the Java Virtual Machine 136 is activated and a new browser window is opened. The modal help URL is provided in an operation 138, and is sent over the network to the server. The server will send the HTML for the help in an operation 140 and operation 142 will display the help in the browser window.
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If operation 148 determines that the pointer is not in the bounding box of the help, it is determined in a step 154 whether the thread is running. If it is, this thread is killed in step 156. This is to eliminate threads after skeleton help is no longer being requested. Next, in an operation 158, it is determined whether a skeleton help is visible. If it is not, operation control is returned to applets at 146. If skeleton help is visible as determined by operation 158, an operation 160 switches to the non-skeleton mode. That is, the flag "skeleton" is set to false.
It is generally necessary to hide all children's in the view when you call skeleton help and then put them back after skeleton is no longer required. This is particularly true when using Java version 1.02 which has no "Z" order. By "Z" order, it is meant that the top window can be placed on top upon request. With systems such as Java version 1.02 that have no "Z" order, the children or underlying views must be explicitly hidden and then returned after the skeleton view is eliminated. This is accomplished in a repainting operation 162 which will be discussed in greater detail with reference to FIG. 14. Operational control is then returned to the applets 146.
The process 144 also detects a request for modal help. In the present invention, this is initiated by a mouse click interrupt wherein the cursor 64 is engaged with the button 66 and a button on the mouse is pressed. In operation 164 determines where the pointer is in the bounding box of the help button, and, if not, process control is returned to the applets 146. If the pointer is in the bounding box of the help button, an operation 166 determines the state or context in which help is requested and operation 168 opens a help window corresponding to the state and allows the navigation using the standard navigation controls of the web browser.
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If operation 172 determines that the process is not currently in skeleton mode, it is determined that step 180 with the current regular background image should be. The image is then displayed in an operation 182 and view-specific painting is accomplished in an operation 184. The operation is then completed at 178.
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It will therefore be appreciated that a computerized non-modal help system of the present invention includes a display screen providing a window for a number of output displays of an application program, a collection of pre-defined images mapped to the output displays by their context, a user input device for initiating non-modal help, and a non-modal displayer which displays one of the predefined images within the window in the place of its contextually-related output display. Preferably, the predefined images are stored as static bit map images including a dithered representation of the context in which the help was requested and a number of help balloons strategically positioned on the dithered image. Even more preferably, the balloons are positioned manually by a graphic artist to maximize their placement on the dithered image. By providing a balloon to described the functionality of every (or most) of the active elements, a user is provided with a quick framework or "skeleton" view of the meaning and operation of the various elements in the display. The predefined images are preferably accessed by a simple database algorithm which maps the environment from which the user is requesting help to an appropriate help image. Methods and formats for storing predefined images in compressed and uncompressed forms are well known to those skilled in the art, as are methods for storing and retrieving images from a database of images.
In one preferred embodiment of the present invention, the screen and the user input device form a part of a client computer system. As noted above, the help system can further include a server computer system coupled to the client computer system, such as by a TCP/IP network. Common forms of TCP/IP networks are referred to as Intranets, Extranets and the Internet. In the networked embodiment of the present invention, the client computer system supports a browser process, and the server computer system supports a server process. The computerized processes running on the client computer system comprise Applets that are delivered from the server computer system to the client computer system via the network. However, once the Applets are running on the client computer system, they communicate directly with the server processes through, for example, sockets in a Java-based system.
In another aspect of the present invention, a computerized help system includes a display screen providing a process window for a number of output displays of a computerized process, a user input device for initiating non-modal and modal help, non-modal help for displaying help within the process window in response to a request for non-modal help by the user, and modal help for displaying help within a help window in response to a request for modal help by the user. Preferably, the user input device is a pointer mechanism such as a mouse, trackball, touch-pad, joystick, etc., wherein the modal help is initiated by a help button displayed on the screen. The non-modal help is preferably initiated by a pointer positioned under the control of the user within a predetermined distance of the help button. The non-modal help preferably includes a collection of pre-defined bitmap images contextually related to the output displays, where each bitmap image includes a non-literal representation of its related output display and textual help within the representation.
A method for providing non-modal help in accordance with the present invention includes the operations of detecting a user request for non-modal help with respect to a dynamic application display, determining a context of the dynamic application display, retrieving a static image contextually related to the dynamic application display, where the static image includes a non-literal representation of the dynamic application display and textual help within the representation, and displaying the static image in the place of the dynamic application display.
While this invention has been described in terms of several preferred embodiments, it is contemplated that alternatives, modifications, permutations and equivalents thereof will become apparent to those skilled in the art upon a reading of the specification and study of the drawings. It is therefore intended that the invention be interpreted as including all such alternatives, modifications, permutations and equivalents as fall within its true spirit and scope.
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